For a quiet moment, they simply stayed there, looking at each other.
The tension softened into something warmer, something neither of them needed to explain. Without saying a word, they let themselves get a little closer, allowing the moment to carry feelings they had both been trying to hide.
Neither of them knew exactly when the hesitation disappeared.
They simply stopped thinking about everything else.
For once, there were no family secrets, no threats, no questions about the future.
Just them.
And perhaps that was what made the moment feel so different.
When they finally pulled away, neither spoke.
Yerin looked down, suddenly aware of how close they had become.
Do-hyun cleared his throat quietly.
"Maybe we should sleep."
Yerin pulled him by his collar.
"I dont want to i want so spend this night with you forgetting my own name."
Neither moved immediately.
Do Hyun tries to get back but yerin hand was frim on his collar and she pulled him close.
And suddenly she lost control and kissed him on his neck.
Do Hyun shock because he has never seen Yerin like this.
Do Hyun also loses control.
He rolls yerin on the bed and now Yerin was beneath him.
With uneven breath Do Hyun speaks.
"You got yourself here by your own."
They kissed.
They lost control over themselves.
Ther did that never even imagined doing it.
The next three hours was filled with unexpected noises.
Yerin in exhaustion sleeps on Do Hyun chest.
Do Hyun hands are wrapped around Yerin's waist.
Sunlight slipped through the curtains.
Yerin slowly opened her eyes.
For several seconds, she simply stared at the ceiling.
Then memories from the previous night came rushing back.
Her eyes widened.
She immediately pulled the blanket over her face.
"Oh my God."
From the other side of the bed, Do-hyun stirred.
"What?"
"Nothing."
His voice was still sleepy.
"Then why did you just say 'Oh my God'?"
"I didn't."
"You definitely did."
Yerin stayed hidden beneath the blanket.
Do-hyun opened his eyes fully now.
He turned toward her.
"Are you hiding?"
"No."
"You're under the blanket."
"I'm thinking."
"With your entire face covered?"
"Yes."
A short silence followed.
Then Do-hyun smiled.
"You're embarrassed."
The blanket moved slightly.
"I'm not."
"You are."
"Do-hyun."
"Hmm?"
"Don't start."
He laughed quietly.
Yerin finally lowered the blanket enough to glare at him.
"Why are you so calm?"
"Who said I'm calm?"
She stared at him.
He looked away.
That was enough of an answer.
Yerin's expression softened.
"So you're embarrassed too."
Do-hyun paused.
"...Maybe."
She smiled despite herself.
For a moment, the awkwardness between them became almost funny.
Neither knew what to call what had happened.
But neither seemed willing to pretend it meant nothing.
Eventually, Yerin got out of bed.
"I'm going to shower."
"Good idea."
She stopped at the door and looked back.
"Why did you say that like I'm supposed to calm down?"
"I didn't."
"You did."
"I really didn't."
She shook her head.
"You're impossible."
"And you're still embarrassed."
Yerin gave him one last look before walking away.
Do-hyun watched the door close behind her.
The smile disappeared slowly.
Something else had already taken its place.
A thought.
A memory.
And a question he couldn't ignore.
Grandmother.
Something Doesn't Add Up
By the time Do-hyun reached the dining room, Yerin was already there.
She looked completely composed now.
Almost.
She was unusually quiet.
Do-hyun sat across from her.
"Did you sleep?"
Yerin looked at him.
"Eventually."
He nodded.
"So did I."
Neither mentioned the previous night again.
But every time their eyes met, there was an unspoken understanding between them.
After breakfast, Do-hyun's phone rang.
His expression changed immediately.
It was one of the investigators.
He stepped away from the table.
"Yes?"
The voice on the other end spoke for several seconds.
Do-hyun's jaw tightened.
"What did you find?"
Another pause.
"You're certain?"
His eyes narrowed.
"Send everything to me."
He ended the call.
Yerin looked up.
"What happened?"
Do-hyun slipped his phone into his pocket.
"The investigation."
Her expression became serious.
"What about it?"
"We received the medical report."
Yerin immediately stopped eating.
"And?"
Do-hyun sat down.
"The doctors confirmed that Grandmother was exposed to poison before her condition suddenly worsened."
Yerin's fingers tightened around the edge of the table.
She already knew.
But hearing it again made the reality heavier.
"Then someone did this."
"That's what we're trying to establish."
Yerin looked at him.
"Do-hyun."
"Hmm?"
"I want to know who."
"So do I."
His voice was calm, but there was something harder underneath it.
Yerin noticed.
"What did they find?"
Do-hyun hesitated.
"We found something in the security records."
The Restricted Entrance
A few hours later, Do-hyun sat inside his office with several security reports spread across the desk.
The mansion had multiple entrances.
Most were monitored constantly.
But there was one restricted entrance used mainly by security staff, deliveries, and authorized family members.
The records showed that someone had entered through it shortly before Grandmother became critically ill.
Do-hyun stared at the timestamp.
11:47 p.m.
He checked the next record.
The same person had left less than twenty minutes later.
No forced entry.
No alarm.
No suspicious damage.
Whoever entered had permission.
He leaned back in his chair.
"Who gave them access?"
His assistant placed another file on the desk.
"The system says the person used an authorized family access code."
Do-hyun looked at him.
"Whose?"
The assistant hesitated.
"That's the strange part."
Do-hyun opened the file.
His eyes moved across the page.
Then stopped.
He read it again.
And again.
His expression slowly hardened.
The code wasn't registered to a servant.
It wasn't registered to security.
It wasn't connected to a delivery team.
It belonged to someone connected directly to the Hwang family.
Someone who shouldn't have been anywhere near that entrance that night.
Do-hyun stood.
"Pull the complete access history."
"All of it?"
"Every entry. Every exit. Every camera."
The assistant nodded.
"Yes, sir."
"And don't tell anyone yet."
The assistant paused.
"Not even Mrs. Choi?"
Do-hyun looked toward the window.
Especially not Yerin.
Not until he knew exactly what he was looking at.
Meanwhile
Yerin stood in the garden at Hwang Mansion, staring at the flowers Grandmother used to care for.
She touched one of the leaves gently.
She still couldn't accept that the person who had always been there for her was gone.
But now there was something else.
Anger.
Someone had hurt her grandmother.
And Yerin intended to find out who.
Her phone suddenly rang.
She looked at the screen.
Do-hyun.
She answered.
"Hello?"
"Where are you?"
"At home."
"I'll come over soon."
Yerin frowned.
"Is something wrong?"
There was a pause.
"Nothing you need to worry about yet."
Her eyes narrowed.
"Do-hyun."
"I'll explain when I get there."
He ended the call.
Yerin stared at her phone.
"That definitely means something is wrong."
She slipped the phone into her pocket.
She had no idea that, across the city, Do-hyun was staring at a security record that could change everything.
Because the person who entered that restricted entrance hadn't broken into the Hwang Mansion.
They had been allowed inside.
And the access code belonged to someone Yerin trusted.
...To Be Continued...